Machine for folding and packing strip-shaped material



h n 0 g M n MM. m" I llllllllhln 1w m u All. Hhhnu r W w an 0 M 0 M I w 7 6 a w 7 z Q -l/ 0 v 3 Z K 8 $3 M A V 6 0 d n 4 3 MW a I Feb. 18, 1930. J. HARD! I MACHINE FOR FOLDING AND PACKING STRIP SHAPED MATERIAL Filed Sept. 10. 1928 Patented Feb. 18, 1930 U STATES PATENT OFFICE I JAKOB 111mm, or BERENTFELDEN, swI'rz nLAnn insomnia FOR FOLDING AND PACKING srmrsnnrnn MATERIAL Application filed September 19, 1928, Serial No. 304,897, and in Switzerland September 13, 1927.

'Mylinv'ention relates to improvements in a machine for folding" and packing strip shaped materialespecially for sanitary purposes, for instance cotton strips.

The devices of this kind as hitherto proposed do not workina manner satisfying sanitary. requirements, as in these devices the mat'erialis folded only in zigzag form, whilst the packing, for example. by bringing the foldingimaterial'in a box must be done in a separate course of work. In consequence thereof the material is liable to be. dirtied, either by being touched by the hands or by parts of the machine or by'dust. A further drawback of these devices consiststherein that the folding means or knives act on the material in such manner that there results a considerablefriction between the material and the folding knives. From this it results that particles are loosened from the material so that dust is formed, and especiallyif cotton strips are submitted to this treatment the material is exposed to an inadmissible mechanical strain.

In my improved machine these drawbacks are avoided by such arrangement of the machine that by t-he same workingmovements the material is laid in zigzag folds and inserted in thepacking.

Having thus the material folded and in serted in thepacking by the same course ofwork it is avoided thatthe material must be treated again after its folding, and the interval of timewithin which the material is liable to be influenced by dustand the like is shortened'a's much as possible, so that the hygienic requirements are satisfied in the best manner. A

In the accompanying drawings is illus trated an example of construction of the machine according to myinvention.

Fig. 1 is a vertical sectionof'the machine on the line 'II of Fig.- 2.

I Fig. 2 shows the machine seen from the leftof Fig. 1. i

-Fig. 3. is a'horizontal section on theline III I1Iof-Fig.1.f y a v Fig. {L shows acam device for controlling the movements of the knives. I

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Fig. 7 shows diagrammatically different working positions of the main working parts of the machine.

Twoshields 2 are mounted on a base plate 1, the tops of the shields being connected with each other by a tie bar 3. Two tables 1, 5 are secured to the shields 2, the tablet'being provided with a receptacle 6 and a guide 7. Theguide 7 is detachably-and exchangeably. mounted on the table lby'means of screws 8 and provided with partitions 9 between which are formed guide slots 10.

A frame 12 is detachably and exchangeably mounted on" the table?) .by means of bolts 11 and divided by means of partitions into a number of compartments which is equal to. the number of the guide slots 10 in the guide 7, and in "the drawing there are'shownthree guide slots 10 and three compartments of the frame 12. The compartments ofthe frame 12 are openon'their both ends and arranged so that they lie inthe moving paths of plungers 13. I These plungers are mounted on rods 14 ofsquare cross section guided in a frame'15. This frame-is detachably mounted on the table and carries an elastic sheet 16 pressing on the rods 14: of the plungers 18. and being adapted to engage in notches17 of the rods 14. a

A roller 18 ismounted on the tablet; within the frame 15. This roller is provided with grooves 19 and adapted to be turned about an axle 21 by means ofia lever 20 (Fig. 5). Means not shown on the drawing are provided to secure the roller-in different positions in order to adjust the-rollerat different levels. Drawing cords 22 are secured to the free ends of the plunger rods 14, each; of the cords being disposed in one ofthe grooves 19 in order to be guided onthe roller 18 and carrying each at its free. end aweight 23.

A shaft 24 mounted onthe lower portions of the shields 2 carries a driving pulley 25 secured to a step pulley 26.

Two cam discs 27 are secured to the shaft 24:. Each of these cam discs is provided with two cam slots 28, 29 disposed on opposite fronts of the discs 27 and shaped in like manner. On an angle of about 180 both cam slots 28, 29 are formed as parts of circles concentric with the shaft 24, on an angle of about the cam slots approach the shaft 24 and on the last angle of about 90 the cam slots depart from the shaft 24 and get into said concentric part of the slots.

On that angle of about 180 on which the cam slots 28, 29 are formed as concentric circles the circumference of the cam discs 27 is parallel to and at some distance of the cam slots 28, 29. At that point where the cam slots 28. 29 are nearest to the shaft 24 the circumference almost wholly approaches the cam slots. The exact form of the cam slots and the circumference of the cam discs 27 is shown in Fig. 1.

Both. cam slots 28 are engaged each by a roller 30 mounted on a rod 31. The lower end of the rod 31 is guided on the shaft 24 by means of a guide link 32 formed on the rod and of a slide 33 mounted to turn on the shaft 24, the upper end of the rod 31 being guided in an opening of the tie bar 3. A shaft 35 is mounted in eyes formed on the rod 31 and carries a blade shaped knife 36 (Fig. 7) which if desired may be formed with teeth on its upper edge (-not shown on the drawing). An excentric pin 37 is secured to each end of the shaft 35 and connected to a roller 39 by means of a connecting rod 38. Each roller 39 engages the circumference of one of the cam discs 27 and is pressed against this circumference by means of springs not shown on the drawings. The rollers 39 are connected to the rods 31 by means of links 40.

Each cam slot 29 is engaged by a roller 41 mounted on a rod 42. The lower end of this rod 42 is guided on the shaft 24 by means of a guide link 43 formed on the rod and of a slide 44 mounted to turn on the shaft 24, the upper end of the rod 42 being guided in an opening of the tie bar 3. A shaft 46 is mounted in eyes 45 of-the rods 42 and carries a knife 47 which is formed similarly to the knife 36, the working edge of which however being directed downward. Excentric pins 48 are secured to the ends of the shaft 46 and are connected to rollers 50 by means of connecting rods 49. Each roller 50 en gages the circumference of one of the cam discs 27 and is pressed against this circumference by means of springs not shown on the drawings. The rollers 50 are connected to the rods 42 by means of links 51.

The machine operates as follows:

The plungers 13 are moved backward so that the elastic sheet 16 engages the notches 17 of the plunger rods 14 keeping thus the plungers without the frame 12. After this the boxes of card-board or the like into which the cotton strips are to be packed are in serted in the compartments of the frame 12, the boxes being opened on both frontal ends. Cramps 52 mounted 'on the frame 12 are adapted to keep the closing frontal strips of the boxes adjacent to the knives 36, 47 as shown in Fig. 6, in order to prevent these strips from hindering the working of the machine. Thereupon the elastic sheet 16 is drawn upward so that the plungers 13 are moved in the boxes by the action of the weight 23.

Stripsof cotton of a breadth corresponding to that of the boxes are put in the receptacle 6 and the ends of these strips of cotton are led through the guide slots 10 of the guide 7, and then between the knives 36, 47 to the frontal ends of each plunger 13.

If the shaft 24 is in the position of Fig. 1

the knife 36 is in its highest and the knife 47 in its lowest position as shown in Fig. 7 at a. As seen in the direction in which the cotton strips are led to the knives the knife 36 is behind the knife 47. The rollers 30, 41 are in those portions of the 'cam slots 28, 29 which are formed by parts of circles concentric with the axis of the shaft 24 and the rollers 39, 50 are on that portion of the circumferen'ce of the cam discs 27 which are concentric with the axis of the shaft 24. The excentric pin 37 is in its highest, the excentric pin 48 in its-lowest position, and the knives '36, 47 are disposed vertically.

In Fig. 7 at a: it is supposed that the machine has performed already some working movements, by which the cotton strip 6 is laid in a fold over the knife 36. If the shaft 24 performs a quarter revolution in the direction of the arrow 53 of Fig. 1 the rollers 30 get to those portions of the cam slots 28 which are nearest to the shaft 24. The rollers 39 get to the corresponding parts of the circumferences of the cam discs 27. In consequence thereof the knife 36 is moved downward and then turned outward. The positions of the rollers 41 and 50 are not changed,.so that the lnivgzs get in the positions shown in Fig.

If the shaft 24 is turned farther a quarter revolution, the knife 36 is raised again by the rods 31 and turned in its vertical position.

whilst the knife 47 still remains in its original position. Theknife 36 is moved so that its upper side touches the surface of the cotton strip e and forms a new fold of the cotton strip between itself and the knife 47 by being moved toward this latter knife in the direction in which the cotton is led to the knives (Fig. 7 at c).

During the next quarter revolution of the shaft 24 the knife 36 remains in the last described position, whilst the rollers 41, 50 are moved toward the shaft 24, causing hereby the rods 42 to be'raised and the excentric pins 48 to be turned upward. The knife 47 is moved hereby in its highest position andthen turned toward the directionfrom which the cotton strip is led to the knives. as shown in Fig. 7 at'd. f

In the last quarter by which a whole revo lution of the shaft 24 is performed, the knife 47 is moved downward again and then turned into its vertical position, so that its lower side touches the surface of the cotton strip 6 and forms a new fold of the cotton strip between itself and the knife 36 by being moved toward this latter knife. The knives 36, 47 thus are moved into the positions shown in Fig. 7 at a.

During the described working movements the plunger 13 by the action of the weight 23 presses against the cotton strip in the packing box and prevents the folds formed therein from getting in disorder, and according to the progressive movement of the cotton into the box this plunger is moved back.

In order to secure a good and uniform working of the knives during their alternating movements one before the other, it is preferred to make the knives of elastic steel or sheet, so that the knives whenpressing the cotton are sufficiently resilient. This resiliency may also be obtained by providing an elastic connection between the excentric pins 37, 48 and the rollers 89, 50 respectively.

The machine as shown in the drawings is constructed for simultaneously packing three strips of cotton. By detaching the guide 7, the frame 12 and the frame 15 with its plungers 13 and replacing these parts by simi larly but otherwise divided parts, the machine can be adapted for simultaneously packing another number of cotton strips which if desired may have another breadth, the

drawing cords 22 then being laid in other grooves 19 of the roller 18 corresponding to the new division of said exchanged parts.

The described arrangement by which the roller 18 can be turned and adjusted at another level serves for the same purpose of altering the division of the machine.

I claim:

tain a box, folding knives arranged immediately before the one open end of the compartment, and means for imparting movements to said knives causingthe knives to be moved up and down and to be turned so that the knives by touching the strip of material with their sides form the material into zigzag folds and simultaneously push the folded material into the box.

a. In a machine for folding and packing strip shaped material at least one compartment open at both ends and adapted to contain a box, folding knives arranged immediately before the one open end of the compartment, a cam device for moving the knives up and down, and a second cam device for imparting to the knives a turning movement, these movements of the knives being so that the knives by touching the strip of material with their sides form the material into zig zag folds and simultaneously push the folded material into the box.

5. In a machine for folding and packing strip shaped material at least one compartment open at both ends and adapted to contain a box, clamping means on the compartment adapted to keep end strips of the boxes open for preventing the end strips from hindering the insertion of the material into the box, folding members arranged immediately before the one open end of the compartment, and means for imparting movements to said folding members so that the folding of the material and its insertion into the box are performed simultaneously and by the same working movements of the folding members.

In testimony whereof I have affixed my signature.

J AKOB HARDI.

1. In a machine for folding and packing strip shaped material at least one compartment open at both ends and adapted to contain a box, means in the compartment for keeping the box in position therein and foldsimultaneously and by the same working movements of the folding members.

3. In a machine for folding and packing strip shaped material at least one compartment open at both ends and adapted to con 

